When This Cat Was Picked Up By Rescuers, His Purple Paws Told Of A Tragic Tale

As the president of a busy rescue shelter in Florida, Megan Sorbara was hardened to seeing extreme signs of all kinds of abuse on the unfortunate animals admitted into her facility. Which is why the 49-year-old was so confused when animal control officers presented her with a perfectly healthy cat in mid-2017. However, on closer inspection, the animal lover saw that the feline’s paws had been colored purple. It came as a physical shock; Sorbara’s heart broke and she was sickened to her stomach.

Sorbara founded the non-profit charity Naples Cat Alliance in her hometown in 2013. Since then, the organization based on the Gulf of Mexico has operated a no-kill animal shelter which rescues injured or neglected cats and re-homes strays. In addition, it operates a Trap-Neuter-Return program to control stray cat numbers.

To this end, Naples Cat Alliance volunteers capture feral felines, run full health checks on them and dispense any necessary vaccinations. A professional veterinarian then sterilizes the captured cats before re-release so that they are unable to contribute further to the homeless feline population of southwest Florida. However, these animals are not just forgotten about and left to fend for themselves afterwards.